Northern Stars Dance Competition
Shine Bright
Tour Dates
Northern Stars Dance Competition is excited to announce our 13th Anniversary Tour Dates! We have six events planned for 2021 – check out the dates & locations below then use the Dance Bug portal to sign-up!
NSDC Registration
Hotels
Niagara Falls
Americana Resort & Waterpark
8444 Lundy’s Ln, Niagara Falls
1-800-263-3508
Please reference Northern Stars to get group booking discount rate.
Hamilton
Markham
Hilton Markham Suites
8500 Warden Avenue
1-800-668-8800
Rooms $125.00 and $135.00, Comp. parking and breakfast vouchers 15.00 at front desk.
Cut-off March 16, 2020
Book Online
Through the Phone: 1-800-668-8800—press 1—-speak to central reservation associate—Arrival date: April 16, Departure date: April 19— GROUP CODE: 1ND—-make the reservation.
Homewood Suites
50 Bodrington Crt.
905-477-4663
Rooms $159.00 and $175.00
Cut-off March 5, 2020
London
The Park Hotel
242 Pall Mall St.
519-642-4444
Rooms $150.00
Cut-off April 8, 2020
Holiday Inn and Express
374 Dundas St.
519-661-0233
Rooms $135.00
Comp. hot breakfast, WIFI.
Cut-off April 8, 2020
Delta Hotels
325 Dundas St.
519-679-6111
Rooms $168.00
Cut-off April 8, 2020
Peterborough
Holiday Inn Peterborough Waterfront
150 George St. N. Peterborough – 1 minute away
Call 1-866-258-5181
Please reference Northern Stars to get group booking discount rate.
Free parking, fridge, Indoor salt water pool, free WiFi
Children under 12 dine for free.
2 double beds $145.00
Ajax
Homewood Suites by Hilton
600 Beck St.
905-686-5969
Rooms $179.00 and $189.00
Kitchen, heated pool, WIFI
Hilton Garden Inn
500 Beck St.
905-686-9400
$169.00 (Breakfast vouchers $10.95)
Heated pool, free WIFI, microwave, fridge, Coffee maker
Cut-off March 2, 2020
About NSDC
Northern Stars was founded in 2008 by the mother-daughter team of Leahanne and Chelsea Kvasni. Together they bring more than 25 years of experience as a dancer, dance teacher and dance parent to their competition.
Northern Stars is all about a fun and rewarding experience for everyone – dancers, teachers, parents, and even the little brothers and sisters that have to come along!
We offer 3 performance levels to ensure a fair and fun competition for all dancers. Every dancer will receive an award for their performance and overall cash awards are given at all 3 performance levels.
Adjudicators' comments are collected using Video Judge and studios can access all of their performances accompanied by the adjudicators' comments online.
We use professional venues, qualified adjudicators and have the friendliest and most caring staff around. Our competition is professional, organized and ALWAYS runs on time!
Director's Message
Thank you for considering Northern Stars Dance Competition for your upcoming competitive season!
At NSDC we pride ourselves on delivering a personal & professional touch in every aspect of our company. We appreciate the countless hours you, the studio directors, teachers, parents & dancers, have put into preparing for our competition and we aim to mirror that effort in everything we do.
We understand that our competition is not only an outlet for young performers to showcase their talent and dedication but also an opportunity to learn the positive values of teamwork, goal-setting and good sportsmanship.
We strongly believe in creating an experience that dancers and their families will always treasure.
We would like to thank the parents for their continued interest in educating their children in the arts, the teachers for inspiring and motivating their students, and the dancers for their love of dance and for truly being what this competition is all about.
Best of luck in your competitive season!
Sincerely yours,
Leahanne & Chelsea
Charity
Participating in NSDC also means promoting amyloidosis disease awareness in the medical community so that it can be recognized earlier and appropriately treated.
We lost an extraordinary member of our family, Valerie Copeland, to this too often misdiagnosed disease. Proceeds from our program sales go to support the Canadian Amyloidosis Support Network and we hope that with your participation we can help provide patient support and education.
Testimonials
Thank you, I will pass along your message to my team and their parents. We thoroughly enjoyed the day and want to thank you for running such a great competition. It was very well organized and definitely a warm family feel 🙂 The judging was very strong! Everyone appreciated how much you gave back. The trophies, etc. were beautiful and everything was very professional. We look forward to participating again next season,”
Cheers,”
I would just like to say that while I’ve been at the studio this week I am still hearing a lot of talk from the kids and parents about how great your competition was. They all thought is was very professionally run, you had great giveaways for both the students and parents and they all said having food accessible – esp. the coffee was a nice change. They have already asked me if we could return again next season. Thank you for working so hard to make it such a positive experience for everyone involved. Take care and good luck with the rest of your venues.”
I was going to email you tonight to let you know how much we enjoyed ourselves this past weekend. I can honestly say that the feedback from all of our students, parents, and staff has been extremely positive and everyone is ecstatic that we will be attending another one of your competitions next weekend.
You have a beautiful family and you all work very well together – we have been to many many competitions over the years and I can say that this was one of the best. Our kids were at the studio tonight and could not stop talking about how much fun they had! We are sincerely honoured to have won the Valerie Copeland Memorial Award and we can’t thank you enough for having such a wonderful event (the Dance-off) for the kids to participate in and experience.
Again, we really congratulate you for a job well done and are very much looking forward to next weekend!!”
Thank-you so very much for an awesome weekend!!! All of my students, parents, and myself absolutely loved everything about the competition…..all of you’ were truly wonderful!! And please let Scott know that I had a blast dancing with him…LOL! We look so forward to coming back next year…..thanks again!”
Thank you so much for making the girls first year competing such a great experience. The girls had a blast attending your competition and look forward to being there again next year. I have had many experiences with competition and I know how overwhelming it can be for someone new. Your family and staff made my students, parents and teachers feel very welcome and comfortable. Thanks again for everything!”
We will definately see you again next year.”
thanks again for a wonderful competition weekend and we hope you were able to relax and enjoy the great weather on Monday! Many thanks,”
I have received the DVD today. Thanks. Congratulation for your successful event!”
Thanks for info… lots to like about your comp including right on time; great atmosphere… especially nice to see a whole family working together… you have done a great job of what is most important…family!!!
All in all, thanks for a great weekend! Good luck!”
Rules
Performance Levels
Determining Performance Level:
Teachers are asked to use their discretion and place dancers at an appropriate performance level based on guidelines below. Northern Stars reserves the right to move dancers to a higher performance level if they’ve been misplaced. Northern Stars will NOT move dancers to a lower performance level.
Novice
- Solo: never competed in a solo, no more than one year of competitive experience in group routines
- Duo/Trio: 2 or 3 have never competed
- Groups: majority have never competed
Competitive
- Dancers who dance 5 hours/week or less or have competed for 3 years or less
Advanced Competitive
- Dancers who dance more than 5 hours/week or have competed for more than 3 years
High School
- Groups only will be accepted at this level
- Solos and Duo/Trios entered by a high school must compete at either the novice, competitive or advanced competitive performance level
University
- Groups only will be accepted at this level
- Solos and Duo/Trios entered by a university must compete at either the novice, competitive or advanced competitive performance level
Professional/Teacher
- Dancers who have graduated from high school and earn wages as either performers or teachers of dance
- Dancers competing at this performance level do not qualify for overall awards
Adult
- For fun only
- Family routines may enter in this category
- Dancers competing at this performance level do not qualify for overall awards
Age Divisions
Age division is determined by calculating the average age of the dancer(s) as of December 31st in the year preceding the competitions. Solo dancers will compete in individual age categories (i.e. 9yrs, 12yrs, 16yrs). The age divisions are as follows:
- Tyke: 4-6
- Mini: 7-8
- Petite: 9-10
- Junior: 11-12
- Intermediate: 13-14
- Teen: 15-16
- Senior: 17-18
- Adult 19-29
- Adult 30+
Entry Divisions and Time Limits
Entry divisions and time limits are as follows:
- Solos: max. 3 minutes
- Duos/Trios: max. 3 minutes
- Small Groups (4-9 dancers): max. 4 minutes
- Large Groups (10-15 dancers): max. 4 minutes
- Line (16+ dancers): max. 5 minutes
- Production (minimum 12 dancers): 5-10 minutes
Time Limits are created for scheduling purposes. Northern Stars MUST be notified at least 30 days prior to the competition if any routine will exceed the time limits listed above. (Please remember to include time needed for set-up of props, etc.).
Note:
- Re-dances will be permitted with a 3 point deduction from the average score. There will be no penalty for re-dances due to technical difficulties.
- Substances that alter the condition of the stage are strictly prohibited.
- Northern Stars will not be responsible for injury or loss of personal belongings.
- Northern Stars reserves the right to disqualify any contestants infringing on the rules or disrespecting their fellow contestants.
- A studio representative must be present at each adjudication & the Overall Awards ceremony in order to accept the studio’s awards. Northern Stars is unable to mail or deliver these awards.
- Entry fees are non refundable. Refunds will only be given as a credit with a doctor’s note at the discretion of the directors.
Dance Categories
- Jazz – Standard Jazz. This category includes: jazz technique, jazz floor work and jazz partnering work. Props, lip sync, vocalization and acrobatics must be limited.
- Lyrical – An emotive dance style which reflects the story line of a piece of music, or the mood or tone of the sound. Ballet & jazz technique may be included. Acrobatics must be limited.
- Tap – Any routine in which tap shoes are worn. This category includes: tap technique, props and partnering work. Pre-recorded tap sounds are not permitted. Acrobatics, vocalization and lip sync must be limited.
- Ballet – Standard demi-pointe ballet or character ballet. This category includes classical ballet technique, props and partnering work. Acrobatic tricks, vocalization and lip sync are not permitted.
- Pointe – Any routine in which pointe shoes are worn. This category includes classical ballet technique en pointe, props and partnering work. Acrobatic tricks, vocalization and lip sync are not permitted.
- Modern – Any routine that is interpretive and is not standard ballet or jazz. Movement should be derived from the expression of a feeling or emotion.
- Acro – Any routine that features gymnastics or tumbling moves.
- Aerial Acro – An Acro performance using a prop that includes: Aerial Hoop, Silks, Trapeze, Rope, Weggsphere, etc. Aerial Acro and Acro are combined for the top Acro discipline awards.
- Musical Theatre – Any routine portraying a recognizable character or a routine reflecting a Broadway show or musical. This category includes lip sync, props and partnering work.
- Song & Dance – Any routine which includes singing and dancing.
- Hip Hop – Urban street style dance including Breakdance, Locking & Popping.
- Contemporary – A combination of modern, jazz and lyrical techniques with ballet fundamentals. Emphasizing artistic expression and unique choreography. Props, lip sync, vocalization & acrobatic moves must be limited.
- Open – Any routine which does not belong to any one of the aforementioned categories. Ethnic dances should be entered here.
Note: Northern Stars reserves the right to move routines entered into the wrong category to the appropriate category.
Studios are responsible for supplying their own microphones for Song & Dance routines. Northern Stars may be able to provide these in some cases depending on the venue but please come prepared just in case.
Scoring & Awards
Judges will give a total score out of one hundred. Fifty points will be allotted to Technique including but not limited to: difficulty, execution, choreography, uniqueness, synchronization. Another fifty points will be allotted to Performance including but not limited to: innovation, creativity, musicality, projection, stage presence and overall impression.
Scores from a panel of three judges will be averaged and then calculated to three decimal points. Every entry receives an award based on the average score achieved.
Awards vary depending on performance level and are determined based on the following scoring systems:
Novice
- Sapphire: average score up to 80.999
- Emerald: average score 81-83.999
- Diamond: average score 84-86.999
- Star Diamond: average score 87-89.999
- Super Nova: average score 90+
Competitive
- Sapphire: average score up to 83.999
- Emerald: average score 84-86.999
- Diamond: average score 87-89.999
- Star Diamond: average score 90-92.999
- Super Nova: average score 93+
Advanced Competitive
- Sapphire: average score up to 86.999
- Emerald: average score 87-89.999
- Diamond: average score 90-92.999
- Star Diamond: average score 93-94.999
- Super Nova: average score 95+
Dancers competing at the High School, University or Parents performance level will be scored using the Competitive scoring system. Dancers competing at the Professional/Teacher performance level will be scored using the Advanced Competitive scoring system.
Special awards created by our Special Awards Judge will also be awarded at every adjudication. Adjudicator comments will be provided on DVD through Video Judge.
Overall Awards
- 1st place overall winners receive a cash scholarship and a custom NSDC crystal trophy.
- 2nd – 5th place overall winners receive a custom NSDC crystal trophy.
Overalls will be awarded in the following categories up to fifth overall. However, Northern Stars reserves the right to limit the number of overalls in each category based on the total number of entries in each:
12 years & Under Novice, Competitive, Advanced Competitive
- Solo
- Soloist
- Duet/Trio
- Small Group/Large Group/Line
- Best Choreography
- Best Costume
13 years & Older Novice, Competitive, Advanced Competitive
- Solo
- Soloist
- Duet/Trio
- Small Group/Large Group/Line
- Best Choreography
- Best Costume
- Overall Production
- Overall High School Group and Overall University/College Group will also be awarded of there are 8 or more entries in the category.
Highest Overall Score in each of the following disciplines will be awarded for each Age Division. Winners of these awards will receive a custom NSDC crystal trophy.
- Jazz
- Tap
- Lyrical/Contemporary/Modern
- Ballet/Pointe
- Acro/Aerial
- Musical Theatre/Song & Dance
- Hip Hop
- Open
In the event of a tie for an overall award both entries will be awarded the full value of the award.
Note: A Soloist is defined as any dancer who has entered 2 or more solos into the competition.
In the event that the same soloist places more than once for Overalls, only their top score will be awarded.
In order to qualify for the dance-off & overall awards, studios must be participating with their full competitive team or they must enter a minimum of 10 groups in addition to any solo performances.
The Valerie Copeland Memorial Award
The winner of this overall award is determined by a dance-off that will take place right before the final adjudication. Ten group routines will qualify to compete for this prestigious award. The finalists will be selected based on their Performance scores not their Technique scores.
Frequently Asked Questions
We’re hoping to answer your questions before you even ask them! Please find below some of the most common questions we hear at NSDC.
Q: What is amethyst?
A: Amethyst is a precious stone. It has a purple colour which is why we’re so fond of it here at Northern Stars!
Q: What are Performance Levels?
A: Performance Levels are used to categorize dancers by their experience and ability. The three Performance Levels used at Northern Stars are Novice, Competitive and Advanced Competitive.
Q: How is the Performance Level determined?
A: Studio directors are asked to use their discretion and select a Performance Level for their dancers based on the following guidelines:
Novice (beginner dancers)
Solo – Dancer has never competed in a solo & has no more than 1 year of competitive experience in group routines.
Duet/Trio – Two or three of the dancers have never competed in either solo, D/T or group routines.
Group – First year of competitive dance for most of the dancers in the group.
Competitive (intermediate dancers)
Dancers who dance 5 hours per week or less and/or have been competing for 3 years or less.
Advanced Competitive (advanced dancers)
Dancers who dance more than 5 hours per week and/or have been competing for more than 3 years.
Northern Stars reserves the right to move dancers to a higher Performance Level if they’ve been misplaced. We will NOT move dancers to a lower Performance Level once the competition has started so please take care when submitting your entry information.
Q: Why choose Northern Stars Dance Competition?
1) The BEST staff around! Friendly, accommodating and helpful – At NSDC every dancer, studio, teacher and parent is important to us.
2) Up to 175 Overalls awarded at every competition including cash prizes & scholarship awards.
3) Our lively, fun & encouraging emcee will keep you entertained all weekend.
4) Professional venues.
5) More than just ribbons! At NSDC, dancers receive beautiful crystal trophies for each routine.
6) Qualified, well-balanced adjudicator panels & a dedicated Special Awards Judge.
7) Video Judge commentary & videos available online right away & DVDs mailed directly to your studio.
8) Lots of giveaways & door prizes + studio directors gift bags.
9) Organized and always on-time!
10) All the small things – We put a lot of effort into the little details when planning our events to ensure a fun and fair competition experience that you’ll always treasure.
11) The Northern Stars DANCE OFF! An unforgettable & exciting part of every weekend, the Valerie Copeland Memorial Award is our top honour!
Q: How does the Scoring System work at NSDC?
The NSDC scoring system varies depending on the Performance Level of the dancers.
Novice dancers can earn our Diamond, Emerald, Sapphire & Amethyst awards with lower scores than the Competitive dancers need. And in the same way, Competitive dancers can earn these awards with lower scores than the Advanced Competitive dancers need.
For example, a dancer receives a total score of 88/100.
If the dancer is Novice, he/she would receive a Diamond award.
If the dancer is Competitive, he/she would receive an Emerald award.
If the dancer is Advanced Competitive, he/she would receive an Sapphire award.
Please visit our Scoring & Awards page to see the full scoring systems used at Northern Stars.
Q: Does every dancer receive an award?
A: Absolutely! Every routine & every dancer will receive an award for each of their routines.
Q: How many overall awards are given at each competition?
A: Northern Stars awards overall prizes at each of our Performance Levels. The total number of overalls awarded depends on the number of entries in each overall category. Typically, 175 overalls are awarded at each weekend.
Q: Do you award cash prizes?
A: Yes! Cash awards are won by the 1st Overall winners in each overall category. Best Costume, Best Choreography & Best Production winners also receive cash prizes. Valerie Copeland Memorial Award winners also receive a cash prize.
Q: A dancer is competing in a solo category for the first time but has previously competed in duet/trio and/or group routines. Should their solo be entered at the Novice Performance Level?
A: Yes, so long as the dancer has no more than one year of previous competitive experience. If the dancer has competed in duet/trio and/or group routines for more than one year, their solo would not be considered Novice.
Q: As a dance parent, where can I find the schedule for the weekend and when will it be available?
A: Please contact your Studio Director for scheduling information.
The first draft of the schedule is sent to the Studio Directors one month before the competition. Once we’ve received corrections, updates and quick-change conflicts back from each studio, we create a revised schedule and send the final version back to the Studio Directors. Our goal is to have the final schedule back to the studios no later than one week prior to the competition.
Q: My dancer(s) won’t be able to compete on Fri/Sat/Sun due to another event or commitment. Can Northern Stars accommodate their schedule?
A: At NSDC we do our very best to accommodate your scheduling requests. However, in order to maintain a fair and conflict-free schedule for ALL studios, it’s not always possible & we appreciate your understanding in this matter.
Q: Can Northern Stars mail/deliver our trophies to the studio?
A: Unfortunately, NSDC is not able to mail or deliver awards. Please make sure a studio representative is present at each adjudication & at the overall awards ceremony.
Still have a question? We’d be happy to hear from you so give us a call, send us an email or even write us a letter! You can find our contact info by clicking here.
Cadence Dance Finals
Northern Stars is proud to be a qualifying competition for the Cadence Dance Finals!
Live Stream
Live Stream
Gallery
Affiliates
Contact us
We’d love to hear from you! Reach out to us via email or phone below.